Three cars travelling at speed on the M20 have been hit by airgun pellets, Kent Police have said.

Officers said all the incidents took place on Tuesday evening on the London-bound M20, near the M26 junction, when the motorway was at its busiest.

In one attack, the window of a Peugeot 206 was smashed. The driver's face was cut and the pellet hit his arm.

An Audi A4 was also hit on a door causing a large dent and another car had a rear passenger window smashed.

All the attacks took place between 18:00 BST and 19:00 BST.

'Fast-moving vehicles'

Police say a footpath runs parallel and level with that stretch of the motorway, and the footpath and motorway are separated by a 3ft-high timber fence which is next to an area of nettles and brambles.

Ch Insp Jon Kirby said: "We are extremely concerned that someone appears to be firing projectiles at fast-moving vehicles. The consequences of this are horrific.

"Whoever is doing this clearly hasn't thought through the consequences of his or her actions and needs to be caught immediately.

"We are focusing all of our efforts on doing this."

He urged motorists to be aware of what has taken place and to report any suspicious activity.